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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe Washington Media Is Starting to Treat Trump Like a Clown
https://newrepublic.com/article/158784/washington-media-starting-treat-trump-like-clownThe most jarring thing about Donald Trump is that he is president. Nearly every press conference, public event, and interview is awash with contradictions. On the one hand, there is the man in the office: grotesque, incoherent, malicious, dumb. On the other, there are the rituals and aesthetic trappings that have grown around the office of the presidency itself, which all communicate its awesome power and solemnity. A lot of media coverage gets lost in these contradictions, as if reporters and camera operators cant quite believe what theyre seeing: How do you capturelet alone hold to accountsomeone so ridiculous?
One of the many virtues of Axioss Jonathan Swans interview with Trump is that it does away with much of that unearned solemnity. The interview in which Trump claims, among very many other things, that John Lewis will be remembered for skipping his inauguration and that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 has failed is not shot like a typical interview with a sitting president. Instead, it has the look of a sitcom. As many have pointed out, the rhythms of its edits, which cut between Trumps relentless maundering and bullshitting, Swans increasingly incredulous reactions, and long, awkward shots of the two of them, most closely resembles HBOs Veep.
So much of Veep is often just sitting around thinking: Whats the dumbest thing that could happen? wrote showrunner David Mandel in The Hollywood Reporter in 2017. The Trump administration is doing stuff that we couldnt invent if we tried. Swans interview captures Trump as he is, which is to say at his dumbest. Nowhere is that clearer than in Swans line of questioning on the administrations handling of Covid-19.
Link to tweet
Swan is understandably baffled when Trump starts handing him printouts, but its worth examining what hes trying to do. The line of questioning is meant to get Trump to acknowledge one simple point: that the United States is in the midst of a horrible pandemic that has killed more than 150,000 people and that all this has occurred under Trumps watch as president of the United States.
*snip*
iemitsu
(3,888 posts)Even if you can't stand Trump's voice or face.
onecaliberal
(33,039 posts)iemitsu
(3,888 posts)Brother Buzz
(36,523 posts)Life Accordion To Trump
Cha
(298,319 posts)for at least 70 days. That important part seems to go down the rabbit Hole too many times.
RainCaster
(10,977 posts)Idiots one and all.
A year of equivalents
A year of 'mis - truths'
A year of jumping to every distraction
FINALLY the bastids wake up and notice that he might be a little soft in the head.
mucifer
(23,658 posts)AZ8theist
(5,554 posts)He IS A FUCKING CLOWN.
And a TRAITOR.
And an IMBECILE.
And a fucking FASCIST.
And a pathological, habitual, non-stop FUCKING LIAR.
A more worthless pile of vile, stinking, sub-human excrement could never be found anywhere.
I can't wait for him to fucking croak.
Lock him up.
(6,965 posts)He even "stole" his own niece's inheritance slice...
Decency and Laws never stopped him from doin' whatever he wanted.
Still don't. And now, over 150k people are dead due to his criminal politicization of a pandemic.
RICO THE TRUMP$ AND THEIr ACCOMPLICE$, BARr FIRST
Mme. Defarge
(8,076 posts)Sarah Cooper.
TheBlackAdder
(28,277 posts).
Younger people develop brain disorders and organ damage that will be chronic life-long issues.
The media needs to stop playing the death game and focus on both deaths and brain/organ damage.
.
iemitsu
(3,888 posts)You are so right that the death count is not the full extent of the crisis.
Dem2theMax
(9,665 posts)His charts? It looks like something a kindergartener would have. This is insane! Like everybody doesn't already know that.
Response to Nevilledog (Original post)
Dem2theMax This message was self-deleted by its author.
Snackshack
(2,541 posts)To trump. The media and the GOP have just been using him to squeeze every ounce of rating and judges out of him that they can. We were always going to be at one of two places right now. If there had been no pandemic and economy was still good and trump were still had the approvals the media and GOP would continue to milk trump for all they can get or if trump had phucked up epically and his approval was tanking both the media and GOP were going to throw him under the bus as they are about to do. There is still two months for them to distance themselves say they always knew trump was a disaster and try to save face for when/if he is beaten in a land slide provided the election is fair and not manipulated. That cannot be allowed to happen. The media propped up Trump when they knew they shouldnt and the GOP has covered for him repeatedly. They both need to own their responsibility in the disaster trump is leaving behind...if he loses.
dem in texas
(2,674 posts)I tuned in Monday and he was giving a report on the hurricane and very poorly articulated. If I wanted to know the status of the storm, I would be watching the Weather Channel.
He is so starved for attention that he will do anything and say anything to get in the daily headlines.
liberalla
(9,290 posts)I still can't believe he was EVER treated as a serious candidate. He's always been a cartoon character to me... and The Apprentice was ridiculous. I'll never understand the appeal.
One point in the axios article went too far and unfairly bashed golden retrievers. It suggested that drump had the attention span of a golden retriever. He wishes! The golden retriever's attention span is much greater than drumps.
Illumination
(2,458 posts)WILL NEVER BE THE MAN THAT JOHN LEWIS WAS!...NEVER!!!
Pluvious
(4,366 posts)She also has a big BLM banner on her Twitter profile page
Truly, is she not the coolest billionaire we know ?!!
Link to tweet
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